Atheists Raise $3 Million in Microfinance Loans To Alleviate Poverty

In just over two years the community of Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious (AASFSHNR) at Kiva.org have raised $3 million (USD) in interest-free loans to help end poverty. Kiva.org is a US non-profit organization that connects lenders with borrowers, from around the globe, who need a micro-finance loan. Peter Kroll, the AASFSHNR community team leader and foundered, commented "This is still the beginning for us. We have organized 14,000 Enlightened individuals from a diaspora of 100's of millions. Our community is thought based and we believe fair peer-to-peer lending can provide the economic opportunity to poor entrepreneurs who have been closed off from the mainstream banking system."

Most of the world's poor live without access to banking. Without collateral they cannot arrange for a loan or open a savings account. Kiva.org has made it possible for the an ordinary person to proactively contribute to making a positive change to this situation.

Kiva's co-founder Matt Flannery has put out his call that "now is a time for the world's privileged to demonstrate to the world's poor just how compassionate and resilient we are." The AASFSHNR community has responded, as well as many other communities and individuals. More than five years after Kiva's founding almost $175 million has been lent worldwide.

Micro-finance is the brain-child of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Mohammad Yunus. Yunus realized decades ago, on a visit to a poor village in his country of Bangladesh, that the local people were caught in an endless cycle of debt caused by loan-sharks. He realized what a difference it would make by "removing the barriers faced by the poor so that they can unleash their creativity and intelligence in the service of humanity."

Web: http://atheist-monkey.blogspot.com
Kiva: http://www.kiva.org/lender/AtheistMonkey

How to Accept Being Atheist

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Atheism isn't an easy thing to come to terms with for anyone. They make up less than 3% of the population in the world and face persecution from many religions. However, learning to accept your disbeliefs will ultimately lead to higher self-confidence and a more positive self-image, along with the increased ability to accept others.

Steps

1. Determine if you truly are an atheist. To clarify, the dictionary definition of atheist is ‘a person who denies or disbelieves the existence of a supreme being or beings.' Are you confused about your faith, or lack thereof? Has there been a recent event in your life that made you question it? If you were formerly religious, do you feel as though God let you down in some way? If the answer is yes to any of these questions, you may not be an atheist—rather, you may be at a crossroads in your life. You might be making decisions right now, and that’s perfectly normal for one who is confused.
   
2. Do research on other religions. Perhaps you might not be Christian, but a Muslim, or vice versa. You could be mistaking atheism as a permanent stage, when it is really a temporary transition from one faith to the next. We’re all a little puzzled by the complicated question of belief.
   
3. If you resolve that you are an atheist, don’t be ashamed of it! Even if you were raised in an environment that actively condemned non-believers, you are your own person, and that includes your beliefs. Don’t concern yourself with the supposed myths that atheists are ‘immoral’ or ‘damned.’ Learn to accept yourself, even if you feel as though you are being judged for it. If people dismiss you upon finding out that you are an atheist, then they truly aren’t worth your time. It’s better to let go of those people in your life, as their intolerance is more than likely exhibited in other areas to other people.
   
4. Surround yourself with understanding friends. Friends show their true colors when they’re faced with challenges or something new. Find friends who love you as a person and can look past and accept you for your atheism, even if they don’t necessarily agree with it.
   
5. Learn to love, accept, and live with religious people. They are people—just like you! No one wants to be looked down upon for something so insignificant in the long run. What matters, obviously, is our character. We are people before atheists or Christians, Muslims or Jews, Buddhists or Hindus. It’s good to get different perspectives, too, especially if you’re in the aforementioned transitional stage. Remember that true friends won’t try to convert you to their side and will let you choose for yourself. Hopefully, they’ll respect your decision.
   
6. Talk to a counselor or therapist if you’re feeling extremely insecure, depressed, or otherwise uncomfortable with your decision. It’s also a good idea to do this if you’re being ridiculed for your atheism. A therapist will not judge you and offer very helpful advice.
   

Tips

• Try to meet other atheists if possible. It can help you to understand that you’re not alone. Listen to their stories of self-acceptance and take heed in them.
  
• Read books about atheism, the most notable being Richard Dawkins’s ‘The God Delusion.’ It is an empowering book for atheists, promoting the fact that atheists can lead fulfilled lives and should be proud while not overbearing. ‘God Is Not Great’ by Christopher Hitchens and ‘The End Of Faith’ by Sam Harris are also good places to start.
  
• Be sure to keep telling yourself that there’s nothing about you to be ashamed of. You’re a free person, and you are free to practice—or not practice—whatever you would like.
  

Warnings

• Broach carefully when the topic of religion is brought up in a conversation. Although it’s a general rule of society not to discuss religion, it will inevitably happen. When it does, don’t be aggressive about your beliefs, and most certainly don’t be hostile when you’re responding to someone’s admission of faith.
  
• Be patient with those that are intolerant of you or your views. Do not attack them or their beliefs. Instead, ask them politely that they refrain from bringing your beliefs into the conversation. If you’re already engaged in a debate with someone, try to bring the topic back up so that you can change it. Be warned, however, as this may be a signal of admitted defeat to your opponent.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Persuade an Atheist to Become Christian
  
• How to Be an Atheist in a Christian Home
  
• How to Survive an Argument With an Atheist
  
• How to Deal With Ignorance with Regard to Atheism
  
• How to Enjoy Being Atheist
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Accept Being Atheist. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

We're Number One!

As you may or may not know, I am a practicing Atheist, whatever that is.

I am also a Kiva.org supporter and have made several micro loans to people around the world.

My reason for this post is simply this: many people seem to mistakenly believe, especially the Christians, that you need Jesus or God in order to have some sort of moral compass. The world will go to hell in a handbasket otherwise. They always cite the good works that Christians do and that sort of thing.

I would agree that the Christians do many, many good deeds and help millions of people around the world everyday.  But, many times that good deed comes with a Jesus-string attached. It is simply one way (among many) that Christianity expands its base. Just like the Catholic church and its stance against abortion, homosexuality, masturbation and birth control.

It's really not about people jerking off, or hoovering a few cells from a uterus or guys banging each other. Its about promoting their own religion. If a (married) couple doesn't masturbate, have abortions, screw the milkman, (maybe I should say Fedex man) or take the pill, chances are they will be pounding each other and popping out new little baby Catholics every year or so.

Now, I realize that this isn't happening so much these days in the West, but what about the uneducated masses in third world countries around the globe? Of course the church is there, helping as they do, but don't forget that help has Jesus attached to it.

Our Kiva group helps others without the strings, and as far as I am concerned that is a strong argument for the Atheist movement.  Oh yeah, I almost forgot. The Atheist group is in first place among Kiva lender groups for loaning the most money to others. Over 900 million dollars in over thirty-two thousand loans. I'm proud to be a part of that.

Check out our group at Kiva.org just click here. I hope you will join us in helping others around the world, at the grassroots level.

Poll Results

So, our last poll asked if Atheists were more immoral than Christians. The results are in and fifty per cent of voters said no and the other half voted; I don't know.

We've started a new poll and it will be running until March 27. The question is: Will you be participating in Earth Hour this year? We hope you will and we also hope you will vote in this poll.

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